Ex-Armstrong Lieutenant Admits Doping

ENLARGE

George Hincapie, left, was a former teammate of Lance Armstrong.
Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

By

Vanessa O'Connell

Updated Oct. 10, 2012 2:04 p.m. ET

George Hincapie, the veteran American cyclist who raced alongside Lance Armstrong during all of the former cycling champion's seven Tour de France victories, acknowledged Wednesday that he took banned substances and that he had disclosed the details of his doping to investigators.

"Early in my professional career, it became clear to me that, given the widespread use of performance enhancing drugs by cyclists at the top of the profession, it was not possible to compete at the highest level without them," Hincapie said in a statement released to The Wall Street Journal Wednesday.

A person familiar with the matter said that in June, Hincapie acknowledged to Travis Tygart, the chief executive of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, that he had used EPO, a banned drug that boosts the number of red blood cells, and also engaged in blood transfusions, another banned practice. This person said Hincapie had provided USADA with testimony that implicated Armstrong in alleged doping, including EPO and testosterone use, as well as blood transfusions.

Hincapie, who had never tested positive for any banned substances during his career, had never spoken publicly before Wednesday about whether banned substances were used on Armstrong's team.

This person said Hincapie had testified that in the mid-1990s, after Armstrong's team got crushed in a race in Italy, Armstrong was very upset and said that he believed other riders were "using stuff" and that something needed to be done. Hincapie understood this to mean that the team needed to get on EPO, the person said.

Hincapie told USADA that he was "generally aware" that Armstrong was using testosterone throughout the time the two were teammates, this person added. In one instance, in 2000 at a race in Spain, Hincapie testified that Armstrong told him he had taken some "oil," this person added. Hincapie testified that he texted Armstrong when he heard drug testers were at their hotel and Armstrong dropped out of the race, this person said.

In 2003, Armstrong contacted Hincapie about needing to use Hincapie's apartment in Girona, Spain, because Armstrong had guests, this person said.

The organization that polices performance-enhancing drug use in American sports will release later Wednesday new details about doping on Lance Armstrong's former cycling team. Reed Albergotti has details on Lunch Break. Photo: Getty Images.

Armstrong showed up with Luis Garcia del Moral, a doctor who worked with the team, and the doctor asked to borrow a coat hanger, this person said. Hincapie testified that del Moral was carrying what Hincapie believes was a blood bag, this person added. The doctor and Mr. Armstrong went into a room and closed the door, according to Hincapie's testimony, this person said. They were in the room for about 45 minutes, he added.

Mr. Hincapie testified that he believed that a blood reinfusion took place, because often the blood bag is taped to a coat hanger and hung on a wall to facilitate the infusion of blood into the vein, this person said. Hincapie testified that a similar procedure was used by del Moral when the doctor reinfused Mr. Hincapie's blood on prior occasions. He thought a transfusion took place, this person added.

Del Moral didn't immediately return an email seeking comment.

Hincapie's lawyer,
David B. Anders,
a partner at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, said Hincapie wouldn't be available to comment beyond the statement, which was short on details. In the statement, he said he stopped taking banned substances in 2006 and has raced clean since then.

A spokesman for Armstrong couldn't be immediately reached for comment.

A spokesman for Armstrong didn't immediately comment on Hincapie's testimony, saying: "We have not been provided access to any testimony from anyone."

Tim Herman, an attorney for Armstrong, bashed the coming report from USADA and said Armstrong was the victim of a "witch hunt." "There is no better example of that targeting and selective, self-serving prosecution than the fact that USADA picked and charged only one athlete, Armstrong, out of a multitude in the alleged 10 plus year multi-team, multi-country conspiracy," Herman said.

Statement from George Hincapie

According to the person familiar with the matter, Hincapie received a subpoena from the U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles in 2010, during a criminal investigation into doping in cycling. He spent a day speaking to prosecutors in Los Angeles in August 2010, with his lawyer present. The criminal investigation was dropped in early 2012, without any charges.

In light of Hincapie's cooperation with USADA, he is expected to receive a six-month suspension preventing him from competing in elite-level sports, the person familiar with the matter said. Hincapie retired from professional cycling in August, but he would like to stay involved in professional cycling after his suspension, as a mentor to other cyclists, the person familiar with the matter added. A spokeswoman for USADA said that any information regarding sanctions will be in the decision when it is posted. She declined to provide specifics on Hincapie.

In June, USADA charged Armstrong and five others associated with the Postal team with engaging in an alleged doping conspiracy aimed at dominating the Tour de France. Armstrong initially challenged USADA's jurisdiction in a lawuit but has since decided not to fight USADA's charges. He has steadfastly denied doping in his career.

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